Wednesday, September 28, 2011

At first glance it seems like the perfect way to outfox a hound - just hide behind it.

But far from staying out of sight, the fox and his mate actually went on to confront the beagle in a bid to protect their four newborn cubs nearby.

Mircea Costina, who caught the moment on camera in a forest north of Montreal, Canada said: 'The dig did finally give up, leaving the fox family to remain safe.

'It was the first time in my life when I saw foxes so brave and who managed to fight back in front of a hunting dog and to defend their pups with their life.'

The dog is a trained hunter, yet he looked more lost than found as he walked just inches past his prey.

And despite keeping his nose to the ground the canine tracker was left totally oblivious to his target after being completely outwitted.

To complete a role reversal, the fox then turned the tables on hundreds of years of tradition by confronting the dog.

Protecting a new litter of four little pups with the mother of his children on hand, the pair made it clear the doggy intruder wasn't welcome.

Mircea, Master biogeography at the University of Montreal, said: 'This is the story of one fox family that I was watching from 2008 for three years.

Catch me if you can! Fox leads dog on a merry old dance

Happy families: Fox and cubs protecting their den

'This year they had four little pups, the two parents are very protective with theirs cubs and it was beautiful to watch.

'In one day, around 7am, I was close to their den, trying to take some pictures.'Suddenly, the two parents became very agitated and in the next moments I heard a dog barking.

'The male started to seek the intruder and the female was pursuing him when the dog was getting very close to the den.

'The male fox promptly started tracking the dog and in one picture you can see him right behind the beagle.

'The dog did finally give up and finally left leaving the fox family to remain safe.'

Masters of Foxhounds of America, the 104-year-old, Virginia-based organization that oversees some 170 foxhunting clubs in U.S. 36 states and across Canada, estimates there are around 15,000 fox hunters across North America.

Fox hunting was carried to the continent from the UK in the 1600s. President George Washington, for example, was a fox hunter and kept a pack of hounds.

The controversial sport is banned in the UK with Scotland outlawing it in 2002, then England and Wales following suit from February 2005 when a November 2004 Act was enforced.